


if you let me, when it gets heavy (know i'll never let you be all alone)

by knubtastick



Category: Batwoman (TV 2019)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:46:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23388982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knubtastick/pseuds/knubtastick
Summary: Kate's had a long day and bourbon isn't the only thing that could ease her troubles.Based off 1x16, but with a twist.
Relationships: Kate Kane/Sophie Moore
Comments: 8
Kudos: 84





	if you let me, when it gets heavy (know i'll never let you be all alone)

**Author's Note:**

> I stg I have way too many wips to be writing this, but there's not a lot of fics for these two and I'm just living for this pairing right now, okay? Not too sure if I'm gonna do anything else with this or if it's just gonna be a oneshot. You guys let me know if you want more. And, as always, you can rant to me on tumblr at knubtastick if you want.
> 
> Title comes from Always, I'll Care by Jeremy Zucker

Kate was so tired. The kind of exhausted that left your bones aching and your limbs heavy. Bruce made the Dark Knight gig seem so effortless. Not without obstacles of course, but manageable. Kate felt like she wasn’t managing a damn thing.

Everything was so daunting and it had all gotten out of hand so fast. One day she was sweeping down from above to rescue dangling damsels from tanks of toxic acid, and the next, she was choking a man to death and watching the life drain from his eyes on the grimy floor of her bar. Granted, Cartwright was anything but a good man, yet she knew she had crossed a line. A line she wasn’t sure she’d be able to uncross.

And when she felt herself slipping into the role of her sister, Alice was right there to welcome her with open arms. It was unfair to Kate that she had to go so far just for her sister to finally want her. For the first time since finding each other again, Kate finally saw beyond the manic laughter and intense stares to find the sister she had lost so long ago. Alice had let her peer into the cracks of her sick and twisted armor, to the terrified and lonely woman that hid within. Laying on that floor and shedding silent tears for the innocence long gone, they grieved for their own losses. And Kate was almost naive enough to fall for it. To believe that there was a real chance of them finding each other and being whole again. Choked sobs and tender thank yous in the dark have a way of doing that.

But Kate knew what had to be done. And that’s how she found herself at Bruce’s office, legs hanging over the balcony’s edge just outside. Even the breath-taking sight of a gleaming Gotham below, shining as bright as the stars above, couldn’t take her away from her miserable thoughts. So the bourbon would have to do.

She was almost done with her first glass when she heard the quiet click of heels on marble behind her. It would be a real mess if this unexpected visitor was looking for trouble. Kate was just buzzed enough to let her feelings wash over her. She was too worn, too weary, to put up much of a fight. She didn’t even have the energy to look over her shoulder to see who it was. Just kept her head hung low as she took one last pull from her drink, emptying it.

“Heard you could use some company.” It was Sophie. Her long, slender legs joined Kate’s over the ledge. “Guess it’s a good thing I don’t have a problem with heights, huh.” She offered a small smile to Kate as she made herself comfortable.

“I’m not-” Kate came up short, closing her eyes long enough to collect herself and soften her tone, “I don’t think I’d make the best company right now.”

“I don’t expect you to be.” Sophie’s warm hand gently enveloped Kate’s. “Mary told me what happened.”

A bitter scoff erupted from the back of Kate’s throat. She pulled away from Sophie and reached for the bottle of bourbon, refilling her glass. She took a violent gulp, feeling it burn enough to leave her eyes watering. Maybe she could blame any tears on the alcohol. “Came here to gloat? Tell me how the Crows- how my _father _was right all along about Alice?”__

__

__Sophie visibly restrained from recoiling. Her brows furrowed before smoothing again with understanding. The next time she spoke, it was so tender and full of care, it left Kate yearning to curl up in her lap and cry in earnest. “I’m not here as a Crow, I’m here as Sophie. The Sophie who worries about you and wants to help you in whatever way you need.” The agent leaned in and looked her deep in the eyes, “As long as you need me, I’m here.”_ _

__

__“I-” Kate felt so lost, she couldn’t possibly have a response for such sincerity. “Why Soph? Why would you?” Kate raised her glass to her lips again. The drink was the only thing loosening her tongue. “Lately, every step I’ve made has felt wrong. I tricked my own sister and locked her in Arkham for doing the kinds of things that I’m just as guilty of.”_ _

__

__In lieu of a response, Sophie took the bourbon out of Kate’s loose grasp. She took a sip herself, seemingly in need of some liquid courage, and placed the glass down on the other side of her. “I know you Kate Kane. I know you well.” Her gaze turned sharp and determined as she scooted closer. “That’s why I can say what I’m about to say and mean it,” she took a steadying breath, “You are the most infuriatingly stubborn person I’ve ever met. But you’re also loyal and just. You fight for what’s right. You fought for me when I wouldn’t even fight for myself, and I’m sorry you ever had to.” The agent swallowed back emotions of her own as she spoke. “But I’ve learned recently that some battles really are worth fighting. And you shouldn’t punish yourself for thinking Alice was one of those battles. She’s still your sister, no matter what she does. It’s just that some battles we don’t win.” Kate’s cheeks were damp with tear tracks. She hid her face in the crook of her arm out of embarrassment. She was Batwoman, it was her job to put criminals behind bars. So why did Alice feel more like a betrayal than justice? Sophie eased Kate’s arm out of the way and ran a thumb just under her eye, catching a runaway teardrop. “Look at me Kate.” Clear green eyes met brown almost instantly. “You’ve only lost the battle, not the war.”_ _

__

__“Are you saying that there’s still a chance for Alice?” Kate asked disbelievingly._ _

__

__“I’m saying-” Sophie’s other hand rose to cradle Kate’s face, “You’ve still got a chance for a lot of things.” Brown irises hid under dark, full lashes as Sophie gave her a loaded look._ _

__

__Mouth flapping open and shut, Kate spluttered out, “Soph, what do you mean?”_ _

__

__“I think you know what I’m talking about.” A knowing smirk quirked the corner of her lips. Sophie’s eyes sparkled in the reflection of the city lights below. “ _Who _I’m talking about.”___ _

___ _

___Kate huffed out a humorless chuckle, “I’m pretty sure we already tried that. Didn’t work.”_ _ _

___ _

___“I took your advice.”_ _ _

___ _

___“Advice? What’d I say?” Kate’s words came a little slower than usual, due to the bourbon or her bafflement, she couldn’t be sure._ _ _

___ _

___Sophie hesitated briefly, like she was debating to tell the whole truth, “You said it might be time for me to take off the mask. And I did. I told my mom.”_ _ _

___ _

___“You told your mom?” Kate’s shock overshadowed all logic at first, but then she connected the dots. Batwoman said that to Sophie, not Kate. “I don’t think I told you that, you might be confusing me with someone-”_ _ _

___ _

___Sophie’s finger suddenly covered Kate’s lips. “Don’t-” her tone was firm, “Don’t tell me that it wasn’t you. I’m not confused and I know you’re Batwoman.”_ _ _

___ _

___Kate tried to argue, even with a finger still pressed firmly against her mouth, “I really don’t think-”_ _ _

___ _

___“Let me finish, okay?” Sophie waited patiently until Kate gave in and nodded. “I’ll admit, you had me fooled with that stunt you pulled, the one where I conveniently ran into both you and ‘Batwoman’.” Her air quotes made it clear she knew the truth. “I met Julia, your ex, today. She saved my life. There was something about her. She looked familiar, like I’d seen her somewhere before. It didn’t click right away, but my skills of observation from the Crows eventually kicked in, and I just _knew _.” Her lips pulled up into a pleased grin. “And when we talked about masks and being honest, I couldn’t picture anyone else under that cowl but you.”___ _ _

___ _

___Kate was speechless. She couldn’t decide whether to confirm or deny the allegations, but she suspected she didn’t have much of a choice._ _ _

___ _

___Sophie’s hands drifted so that one was along Kate’s jaw and the other wrapped around the side of her neck, “I only ever wanted it to be you, Kate.”_ _ _

___ _

___Steadily, so as not to break the spell they were under up on this quiet balcony overlooking Gotham’s night scene, Kate twisted her fingers into the fabric of Sophie’s shirt, beneath her jacket, holding onto her waist for dear life. The blur of alcohol and emotion she was cycling through made her feel in danger of drifting off into the night if she didn’t find something to anchor herself to. She rested their foreheads together carefully, “Please don’t say something you don’t mean. I can’t do it again if you don’t mean it.” The words passed Kate’s lips in a desperate plea. She was strong and capable, but she was also human and her heart could be broken like anyone else’s._ _ _

___ _

___“I mean it. And I’m ready for whatever comes, so long as we’re in this together.” The vulnerability could be heard in the way that Sophie asked more than stated the last part. “Me and you. And I mean all of you.” Her breath billowed across Kate’s face, warm and tinged with the lightest scent of bourbon. It left her wanting to do more than just feel it, she wanted to take the breath right out of Sophie’s lungs. To taste it for herself._ _ _

___ _

___The hand on Kate’s neck slid down to her chest as Sophie traced the imaginary bat sigil that usually rested there, “That means both of your identities, Kate.” There really was no backing out of this when Sophie spoke so sternly._ _ _

___ _

___Green eyes turned impossibly tender as Kate finally conceded to the whims of fate, “You have me. You always have.”_ _ _

___ _

___Finding no further need for words, Sophie laid her palm flat against Kate’s chest and used the other to pull the not-so-secret vigilante’s face in for a sweet kiss. Lips met in a delicate and familiar dance. Steady and sure, always meeting evenly in the middle. Or so that was the case until the pair found themselves getting caught up in the moment. Kate slanted her head so that she had a better angle, her fingertips digging in harder at the agent’s waist. A moan reverberated from Sophie’s mouth to Kate’s, seemingly enjoying the sensation. Sophie pushed in further, with both her body and her tongue, encouraging their tame dance to move into something more heated._ _ _

___ _

___Kate no longer felt the bourbon fogging her mind, only Sophie. And the way her fingers squeezed at the back of her neck. Or the way her palm pressed just below the collar of her shirt, right over her racing heart. In this moment, it wasn’t about Alice, or the Crows, or Gotham, or her father. They could be resolved another day. Right now, it was only about Sophie. The woman who broke her heart and might just put it back together again._ _ _

___ _

___In a whisper so quiet she wondered if Sophie even heard, Kate assured, “Together.”_ _ _

___ _

___The contagious grin on Sophie’s lips, which interrupted their kiss, led Kate to believe she caught it. That and the return of a resolute “Always.”_ _ _


End file.
